Nick and I began our mentorship in late November 2023. At that time, Nick was starting his transition journey and preparing to retire from the U.S. Air Force. Since our initial introduction call, Nick has been proactive in maintaining bi-weekly communication via calls, texts, and LinkedIn messages. Our conversations have expanded to cover pre-retirement requirements, post-military expectations, personal growth, and family interests.

Nick recently retired on May 3rd and relocated his family to Castle Rock, CO, where they plan to stay for the next few years. While he is still looking for a new opportunity in a Learning & Development (L&D) role, Nick has prioritized his family and is focused on ensuring a good work/life balance before returning to the workforce.

Nick’s dedication and commitment to ACP’s mentorship program have made this professional connection one that will exceed the one-year commitment. Thank you, Nick.

Mentor: Jay Villazon, Stafford, VA, Peraton

Stephen Billeter has approached the ACP mentorship with drive and enthusiasm as he transitions into the cybersecurity industry. Cybersecurity is an area Stephen has long been passionate about and is currently completing his degree in.

As part of the ACP mentorship, Stephen has had the opportunity to speak with panels of both defensive and offensive cybersecurity practitioners. These have been a mix of both veterans and non-veterans to enhance perspectives on transition and civilian work.

Another project Stephen has worked on to showcase his technical abilities is a writeup for a “capture-the-flag” style cybersecurity challenge based on packet analysis, an important skill for Security Operations Centers. Stephen’s first in-person meeting with his mentor was at a local Cybersecurity conference, where he attended talks and met future colleagues.

Through this mentorship, Stephen has shown his enormous potential within the cybersecurity industry, and it has been an absolute pleasure advising him.

Mentor: Chris Wheeler, Baltimore, MD, Morgan Stanley

I would like to nominate Aaron Lynch not only for his diligence and determination to land a great role after his service but also for his natural curiosity to explore many paths toward success. Since I have had the pleasure of working with Aaron, he has clearly articulated what he was seeking and actively pursued ideas and recommendations that we discussed. He has taken training, read books, and come prepared with topics where he needed guidance. 

Over the course of our biweekly sessions, we started with goals and aspirations around a range of topics such as career, family, finances, health, and well-being to name a few. The intent was to develop a well-balanced life. I offered my successes as well as my failures in the hope that he would learn from them. We discussed time-proven techniques and tools for continuous improvement and growth. Aaron accepted a great position fairly quickly and already had his sights set on career management and upward mobility. 

Given Aaron’s extensive leadership experience in the Army, I quickly learned that there is a wealth of experiences and knowledge that our military veterans can provide us.  Any corporation would be EXTREMELY fortunate to have our veterans as part of its team, as leaders who will help our organizations achieve the next level of disciplined excellence. We continue to meet biweekly with any topic that comes up during the month such as effective team dynamics, fine-tuning leadership style, and personal finance. He is now pursuing his MBA while finishing up an ambitious academic capstone project. I look forward to our discussions, and building a lasting friendship, and wish him the very best!

Mentor: Phil Kurumunda, New York, NY, MetLife

When we first met Mike felt a little lost as this was the first time in his career he didn't feel confident about his next step.

Working together we were able to help him focus.

We developed a bit of a roadmap that had him look at those things in his career and hopefully future career which would give him personal and professional satisfaction.

Throughout his career, he has been a leader since 2002 and this contributed to his success in the Air Force as well as his self-confidence.

At this point in his career, it was the first time that his self-confidence needed a bit of a boost.

We have met at least once a month and sometimes more and in that time he has been able to look at a variety of companies and jobs and as he continues the process he has a better grasp of what he is actually looking for.

Mike doesn't just want a job he wants a career that will offer him the opportunity to use his strong Air Force background and skill sets while continuing to grow and learn.

Mike's background will be an asset to any company.

Mentor: Fran Sharp, New York, NY, Bloomberg

I would like to nominate Yohana because she has demonstrated the focus & drive of a leader through this process thus far.

Yohana began the process understanding her needs and making herself available to accept all guidance that I have to offer.

In our short time together, Yohana clearly articulated her goals & has continually made progress. Specifically, she has met with a professional resume writer and asked me to review the finished product.

Yohana also reviewed numerous colleges to determine which Paralegal degree program would work best for her.  She ultimately selected a program after scheduling a virtual meeting with the VA (funding parameters) & a school representative.

Yohana has accomplished all of the above and more while finishing her undergraduate degree & preparing to close out her United States Army career.

Yohana is a phenomenal person who will accomplish her eventual goal of working in the immigration law space.

She is a pleasure to work with.

Mentor: Rhonda Moody, Virginia Beach, VA, Hampton Commonwealth's Attorney's Office

Marcus is a young, vibrant, and former member of the US Air Force, who currently resides in Phoenix, Arizona.

For the past 4 months, Marcus and I have been meeting every month and working closely on an oriented approach for his career growth in terms of skill development and job achievement.

Marcus maximized his opportunities by working according to the plan and completed the 2 key certifications in the Network Security domain within a record span of 3 months.

As a mentor, I am impressed with Marcus’s action-oriented approach and preparation for our mentoring sessions. He also actively implemented the strategies discussed through the mentoring sessions. Throughout our time together, Marcus consistently met the monthly goals.

This achievement is a testament to Marcus's brilliance, dedication, and hard work. He is brimming with ideas, questions, and a palpable passion for technology. Over the months, he transformed his raw enthusiasm into a focused pursuit of knowledge and innovation and finally landed a job with

This is just a first step towards his dream of the journey in IT; we will be working together to achieve his mid and long-term goals for the next 12 months.

Mentor: Ramesh Nyathani, Schaumburg, IL, US Foods Inc.